Angel barks out a triple-double

Angel McCoughtry has taken such a liking to what Louisville Coach Jeff Walz calls his "mad dog press" that the senior star has started barking while she's on the court. Seriously.

Considering the way McCoughtry helped the 12th-ranked Cardinals shut down Hartford 70-42 on Wednesday, there are worse ways to get motivated. McCoughtry had 18 points, 10 rebounds and 10 steals for the fifth triple-double in school history as Louisville (8-1) overwhelmed the Hawks.

Sign Up and Save

"We bark, and it gets the team fired up, and that's how we get our steals," McCoughtry said.

The Cardinals forced 28 turnovers, held Hartford to 36 percent shooting and took control during a 25-6 run midway through the first half. The burst was fueled by Louisville's aggressive half-court trap that kept the Hawks (5-5) on their heels.

"We have been trying to try to teach the kids you've got to have an attitude and part of it is 'Do whatever you have to do, try to scare somebody.' I don't care, intimidate them," Walz said.

During one sequence McCoughtry's woofing got so loud one of the Hawks ended up passing her the ball.

Nation men

Indiana 66, TCU 56: Devan Dumes scored 20 points and Tom Pritchard added 15 points, leading the Hoosiers at home. The victory ended Indiana's two-game losing streak, but TCU didn't make it easy on IU (5-4). The teams combined for 16 turnovers and 19 fouls, shot a combined 38.6 percent from the floor and connected on just five of 16 three-pointers in the first half.

No. 5 Oklahoma 78, Maine 52: Blake Griffin had 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Sooners at home. Griffin made his first six shots and finished 11-for-13 from the field. The 6-foot-10 sophomore recorded his seventh double-double of the season. He played 22 minutes, and 14 of his points came on dunks.

SEC men

Charlotte 70, Mississippi St. 64: Lamont Mack had a season-high 19 points and eight rebounds to lead Charlotte at Mississippi State. Charlotte (3-6) led by as much as 20 points midway through the second half. A 21-4 run by Mississippi State (6-3) in the final six minutes closed the gap but never endangered the outcome.

Florida 94, Florida Gulf Coast 60: Alex Tyus and Walter Hodge scored 19 points apiece, and Florida won at home. The Eagles (2-6) were up 28-27 late in the first half, thanks mostly to Reed Baker's five three-pointers. Then the Gators (7-2) pounded the ball inside using their height advantage, and pulled away after the break.

Vanderbilt 78, Alabama A&M 55: Freshman Jeffery Taylor scored 18 points as host e_SDHpVanderbilt snapped a two-game losing streak. Taylor was 8-for-9 from the field and scored six straight points — which included a pair of dunks — in the second half as the Commodores (6-3) stretched their lead to 65-44 with 6:11 left. Taylor scored in double figures for the eighth time in nine games.

Around the nation

Syracuse: A university judicial hearing board has ruled that starting guard Eric Devendorf violated the Student Code of Conduct after allegedly hitting a female student in the face. The board recommended that Devendorf, a 6-foot-4 junior, be suspended for the remainder of the academic year. He is expected to appeal the decision.

Kansas: Freshman forward Markieff Morris agreed to perform 20 hours of community service for shooting a Wisconsin woman with plastic BBs in August in a university dorm courtyard.

Murray State: Forward Jewuan Long will miss the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury against Morehead State last week.